City Council approves Parkersburg Police internship program
Members of Parkersburg City Council vote on the final reading of an ordinance establishing a Police Department internship program during Tuesday’s meeting at the Municipal Building. (Photo by Evan Bevins)
Parkersburg City Councilwoman Sharon Kuhl, right, passes copies of the 2020 Development Department report to Councilwoman Jessica Cottrille during Tuesday’s council meeting at the Municipal Building. (Photo by Evan Bevins)
Members of Parkersburg City Council vote on the final reading of an ordinance establishing a Police Department internship program during Tuesday’s meeting at the Municipal Building. (Photo by Evan Bevins)
Parkersburg City Councilwoman Sharon Kuhl, right, passes copies of the 2020 Development Department report to Councilwoman Jessica Cottrille during Tuesday’s council meeting at the Municipal Building. (Photo by Evan Bevins)
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PARKERSBURG -- After Parkersburg City Council passed an ordinance establishing a Police Department internship program on final reading Tuesday, Police Chief Joe Martin hopes to have the first two recruits start orientation next week.
Pending the completion of a couple more pre-employment steps, "we'll start them Monday," Martin said after Tuesday's council meeting.
All five items on the agenda received approval on 8-0 votes, with Councilman Mike Reynolds absent.
The internship program will have four slots for officer candidates who may not yet be ready to attend the West Virginia State Police Academy and join the force. They'll be paid $10 an hour as they spend up to 2,080 hours learning about different aspects of the job, including shadowing uniformed officers.
Also approved on final reading was an ordinance updating portions of the city's personnel policy and procedure manual to reflect the 2020 U.S. Supreme Court ruling that Civil Rights Act protections regarding "sex" apply to sexual orientation and gender identity and adding a code of conduct that reflects language in the manual's disciplinary section.
Council passed on first reading an ordinance donating the no-longer-in-use greenhouse behind the Point Park Marketplace to the Boys & Girls Club of Parkersburg. The organization plans to use the structure for its Discovery Garden program, which aims to battle food insecurity by teaching children to garden and cook the resulting produce.
"After the second reading, we'll take it apart and take it down there for them," Mayor Tom Joyce said.
Other ordinances that passed on first reading would vacate the southern end of Fox Hills Drive to better connect Johnson T. Janes Park with parcels donated to the city and update Municipal Planning Commission rules to specifically state that members can participate in meetings via electronic means.
At the start of the meeting, Joyce gave council members copies of the capital plan, outlining projected public works expenditures for the next five years, and the Development Department's 2020 report.
Included in the report was an update on the distribution of federal funds awarded to the city to help residents and businesses affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Thirty-eight households received assistance totaling $46,793 to make emergency payments to prevent utility cutoffs and evictions. Sixteen small businesses have been or are in the process of being awarded short-term working capital, with $111,188 distributed so far.